The Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation (EGPC) has signed three new agreements with international companies to explore for oil and gas in the Western Desert, Gulf of Suez, and North Sinai regions.

The first agreement was signed with Perenco Egypt to drill three wells in the Offshore North Sinai (ONS) area with investments of  $46 million and a $1 million signature bonus.

Perenco, a French independent oil and gas company, has been steadily expanding its footprint in Egypt. In June, the company was awarded the El Fayrouz Onshore Block in North Sinai, where it plans to conduct a 3D seismic survey and drill an exploration well.

The second agreement was signed with UAE Dragon Oil to drill three wells at  East El-Hamd area in the Gulf of Suez, with $40.5 million investments  and a $4.5 million signature bonus.

Dragon Oil commenced its operations in Egypt in 2019 in the Gulf of Suez, where it has strengthened its investments in exploration and production in partnership with Gulf of Suez Petroleum Company GUPCO and EGPC.

The third agreement was signed with US Apache for exploration and development to add five new blocks that involve drilling 14 wells in the Western Desert with $35 million investments and a $25 million signature bonus.

Apache, which has been present in Egypt since the mid-1990s, is a leading producer in the Western Desert through its joint venture with EGPC, Khalda Petroleum. Earlier this year, Karim Badawi, Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources met with Apache leaders to review plans for drilling new wells as well as targeted programs to increase the production of natural gas in the Western Desert.

In May,  Khalda Petroleum discovered South NUT-1 well in the Western Desert which came onstream this month with a production rate of 50 million cubic feet per day (mcf/d) of natural gas.

Commenting on the signing ceremonies, Karim Badawi, Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources, noted that the deals reflect the growing confidence of international companies in Egypt’s energy sector.